On Monday, some of Kimbarow’s musical pals will play for him at the Belly Up in a benefit show billed as “All for Paul.” (See below for ticket information.) The lineup will feature Croce, at least three members of Woodstock festival veterans Sha Na Na (whose drum chair Kimbarow has filled since 2000, but is now unable to maintain), The Billy Thompson Band, Ruby and The Red Hots, Russell Pompeo, Soul Persuaders, KM2 and Talk of the Town, featuring Janice Edwards.

Their goal: To help raise money for Kimbarow, who is recovering from a February liver transplant and has been unable to work since a round of shows with Sha Na Na in December.

“Paulie is a great drummer and a great friend,” said Sha Na Na founder Jocko Marcellino, a longtime La Jolla resident. “He’s a chameleon of musical styles with great taste and he’s a joy to travel with around the country. Paul is a real mensch.”

Singer-guitarist Thompson, now an East Coast resident, planned his July California tour around Monday’s benefit for Kimbarow. The two played in the 1980s and ‘90s in the Mighty Penguins, a band that also featured Eagles touring saxophonist Al Garth.

“Paul is truly a wonderful soul who has been a stalwart member of the San Diego musical community,” Thompson said.

“There’s a joke about the Pope coming out on the Vatican balcony and people going crazy, clapping and cheering. Then, someone says: ‘I don’t know who the guy dressed in white is, but the guy next to him is Paul Kimbarow!’ That’s how folks feel about Paul. He turned his life around over 30 years ago and has been helping people with substance-abuse issues ever since. So let’s give back now to someone who has given us so much over the years.”

"All for Paul, A Benefit Concert and Silent Auction for Paul Kimbarow"

“All for Paul” benefit was organized by two of Kimbarow’s friends and periodic collaborators, Russell Pompeo, the owner of Moonlight Music in Encinitas; and cellist Mick Fritzsching, a friend of the drummer since they met in New York in the 1970s.

“It was very easy to put this event together. Everybody was overwhelmingly eager to help Paul,” Pompeo said. “All these musicians have been touched by Paul and know him and love him, so it just snowballed. Fender donated a Stratocaster, which is not a cheap guitar, for us to auction off at Monday’s benefit. And (Eagles guitarist) Joe Walsh’s camp was very helpful getting the guitar to Joe and having him sign it. Everybody was like: ‘Yeah, lets do it for Paul!’ ”